November 12, 2018

We’re proud of our global community, and we work hard to create a working environment which recognises and harnesses the contribution of every member of the University.

In order for us to do this we need to be able to identify groups of people who are under-represented, who are not progressing as quickly as others or who are less successful and then change things for the better.

Through our Athena SWAN work we have been able to identify and take steps to address disparities in pay and progression in relation to gender and we want to do the same for ethnicity. However, a significant proportion of our staff have not disclosed their ethnicity, and therefore we are unable to draw any conclusions from the data we hold.

The sensitive information you provide is considered to require particular care, known as ‘special category data’ and we can only hold this data if you consent to share it, by updating it on HR Organiser.

The information you provide will be held securely and treated as strictly confidential in accordance with the requirements of the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR).

More information about how we protect your privacy and how long we hold your data can be found in our Privacy Notices.

Other initiatives to further race equality

The Government’s Race at Work Charter, launched on 11 October to coincide with Black History Month, is a ‘call to action’ for leaders and organisations across all sectors and several high-profile organisations have already signed up.

The government has also published a consultation, open until January 2019, which looks at whether organisations should be required to report how people from different ethnic backgrounds are paid.

Advance HE’s Race Equality Charter, of which the University is a member, aims to improve the representation, progression and success of minority ethnic staff and students within higher education.

October 11, 2018

There are two sessions being delivered by the legal firm, Eversheds Sutherland, on the 31 October and 14 November covering Brexit for our EU colleagues. These sessions will help us to understand the immigration implications of Brexit and the practical steps which could be taken now in relation to remaining in the UK. Whilst the rules and requirements are still subject to change, the session gives an opportunity to find out more information and ask questions. A provisional agenda for each session is given below:

an explanation of the provisions currently determined regarding citizens’ rights and those yet to be agreed;

a detailed guide to the applications which are relevant to you and could confirm your right to live in the UK. The intention is that this would provide the information needed to make the applications or, alternatively, highlight potential problems which might require further legal help;

a summary of the processes used by UK Visas and Immigration to determine such applications, practical issues such as timing and documentation necessary, and how this is envisaged to change between now and December 2020;

a practical explanation of how British citizenship applications can be made and the relevance of these to the relevance of dual nationality;

a discussion of queries raised.

The session will not be a guide to individual applications but will deal with the points mentioned above and leave at least 1 hour 30 mins for questions.

After the sessions, Simon is happy to pick up queries in private discussions which directly relate to clarification of something which has been discussed, but he will not be able to advise in detail about individual applications and whether they qualify.

There is the option of attending this session via webinar using the software Zoom. We will also be recording the sessions via Zoom and they will be made available online. For colleagues attending from the Southend and Loughton campus, you can attend via webinar from your PC, and you will also be able to submit questions via the webinar.

If you would like to attend please email brexit@essex.ac.uk indicating which date you would like to attend and whether you would like to attend in-person or via the webinar. If you are attending via webinar you will be sent a link with details of how to attend closer to the time.

September 17, 2018

IT Training is offering three exciting new Adobe courses this term for all members of our University community. Whatever your role, you’ll likely need to use images or digital media to explain concepts. Whislt you don’t necessarily need to be an Adobe power user, understanding how to work with the core tools can both empower you and help you to produce more compelling content.

Photoshop for beginners, 22 & 23 Oct, 3 & 4 Dec

An introduction to this industry-standard image editing software that allows users to manipulate, enhance, crop, resize and correct colour on digital images. You’ll analyse how an image can be improved and then edit it in order to improve it.

InDesign for beginners, 29 & 30 Oct, 10 & 12 Dec

Learn how to create and edit multi-page documents for publication and screen use. You’ll learn how to build a document layout; create documents in various sizes and page lengths; add, import and edit text as well as place and manipulate photographs and graphics.

Creating digital content with Adobe , 5, 6 & 7 Nov, 7, 8 & 9 Jan

In the first part of this course you will use Photoshop to edit, fix and augment your images to make them look striking and prepare them for web and print. Then you are introduced to Illustrator and vector graphics for logos and infographics. Lastly, you will concentrate on InDesign where you will put together brochures, banners and other materials using the media which you created previously.

For more information and to book these and other digital skills courses, visit the IT Training web page

April 30, 2018

The Harassment Advisory Network offers a drop-in session each Tuesday, 1pm-2pm in 4N.6.2. No appointment is necessary, just turn up for a confidential 45minute chat with one of our Harassment Advisers, who will help “signpost” you to routes to solution and support for any harassment or bullying issues you may have.

April 18, 2018

The refurbishment of the Employee Relations (which also includes Payroll, Pensions and Resourcing) space of the HR Department is now complete and we have moved back from our temporary location. The reception is now situated in 4SA.6.8; to find us you will need to go in through the 4SE entrance and up the stairs toward the HR training rooms.

All phone numbers and email addresses remain unchanged so please continue to contact us in the same way.

Thank you to our colleagues who gave us shelter during this time, also a huge thank you to the teams that undertook the upgrade and moved us seamlessly back into our new offices.

Susie Morgan, Director of HR and Lyn Aldridge, her PA, have also moved back into that space.

March 5, 2018

The current HR Organiser and People Manager are undergoing some changes to improve the user experience and implement some additional features. From 6 March 2018 the new look and feel will be in place. You don’t need to do anything; the changes will be there when you next log in.

HR Organiser:

What’s new?

– New look and feel

– You can now view your grade, scale point and salary under the employment tab

Hints and Tips

– Moving home? You can change your address or add a secondary address

– Keep an eye out for news, updates and tips on the home page

– Did you know you can log into HR Organiser from your smart phone?

People Manager

What’s new?

– New look and feel, fewer clicks to navigate

– Can view an absence/leave calendar for your whole team (click on the “out of office today” box on your homepage)

– Can see details of maternity/paternity and adoption leave

– Easier to approve timesheets directly

– A new summary page where you can see all your employees’ information in one place, including their annual leave balance and sickness history

Did you know?

– You can redirect your approvals when on leave by selecting “redirect your tasks” on the homepage

– You can check probation and fixed-term end dates under the personal information tab on each employee’s information page

If you have any queries please email hrorg@essex.ac.uk who will be able to assist you. If you have any queries on the information held within HR Organiser or People Manager please contact staffing@essex.ac.uk/

January 10, 2018

Tanya, Donna and Claire tell us about planned improvements to the way we use People Manager and HR Organiser.

Q: Why are improvements needed to HR Organiser?

A: People told us in a recent survey, that although generally they found HR Organiser to be a useful tool, some improvements were needed to make a better experience for users.

Q: What are the key areas that people told you needed to be improved?

A: The feedback we received was that people were keen to see some changes in relation to annual leave calculations, user guides and the way we present learning events.

Q: What did people like about HR Organiser?

A: The survey respondents told use that generally people felt confident making annual leaving bookings and viewing information such as payslips, P60s and personal data. People also liked that they could access information 24/7 and keep track of annual leave.

Q: How will you go about making the changes?

A: The iHR programme board is responsible for overseeing the full implementation of iTrent. Some of the changes you would like to see to the way HR Organiser and People Manager look and feel are being addressed through a systems upgrade in February 2018.

Q: Who is responsible for taking improvements forward?

A: The HR Employee Relations team, Finance Business Systems team and IT Services all have responsibility for the successful implementation and improvement of iTrent and are committed to working together to achieve this.

A: We are keen to hear from people who would be interested in undertaking some user testing. If you would like to volunteer to test out potential systems changes before they are made live please send your details to Tanya Clements, Payroll and Reward Manager.

November 8, 2017

In recognition of International Men’s Day, free NHS health checks for men are available at Colchester and Southend campuses on Wednesday 22 November.

Confidential checks will be carried out by a fully trained Health Check worker, and will take approximately 20minutes to complete. Fully explained results will be provided instantly, guidance will also be provided.

To qualify, you must be male aged between 40-74 years, registered with a local GP or living in Essex and not had a check in the last 5 years.

Testing will take place 10am-6pm at Colchester(mobile testing unit parked by the Ivor Crewe Lecture Hall) and 11.30am-2.30pm at Southend (GB.3.54).

October 4, 2017

The Harassment Advisory Network offers a confidential signposting service for staff, students and visitors who experience any kind of bullying or harassment, relating to, for example, sexual orientation, gender identity, age, race, religion, etc.

We are pleased to announce that our weekly Drop-In sessions, will commence on Tuesday 3 October from 1pm to 2pm in the Multi-Faith Chaplaincy, Room MFC 1. No appointment is necessary, just turn up. An adviser will be on duty to help ‘signpost’ you to routes to solutions and support.

The ECDIS programme offers adult dependents of University students, staff or visiting fellows the opportunity to improve their English through free classes on campus. ECDIS also gives participants the chance to meet people from other countries and cultures, and helps students develop their language skills while learning about UK society.

The classes are taught at three basic level: Beginner.Elementary, Lower Intermediate/Intermediate and Upper Intermediate/Advanced and the main focus will be listening, speaking, and reading with some limited focus on writing skills. there is also a weekly Social English session open to all ECDIS students, at which participants have the opportunity to practice their English conversation skills and discuss topics relating to life in Britain.

For more information or to register for these classes, contact us on ecdis@essex.ac.uk